1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a contact for an electrical connector, and particularly to a contact for an electrical connector for being press fitted into a corresponding through hole in a PCB (Printed Circuit Board) where the electrical connector is mounted.
2. Description of Prior Art
Two methods are commonly used in the connector field for connecting contacts of an electrical connector to a PCB defining a plurality of through holes for receiving the contacts therein. One method is to insert tail portions of the contacts into corresponding through holes of the PCB and then solder the tail portions thereto. However, the soldering process is inconvenient and tedious. Therefore, another method, i.e., press-fitting, is more readily applied by the manufacturers to facilitate assembly.
As is illustrated in FIGS. 4-6, a tail portion 61 of a conventional press-fitting type contact 6 is formed by stamping a hole 611 in the pre-formed tail portion of the contact 6. The hole 611 typically has an eye-of-needle shape. By simply press fitting the tail portion 61 of the contact 6 into a corresponding through hole 71 of the PCB 7, an electrical connection can be established between the contact 6 and the PCB 7. During the press-fit engagement, the tail portion 61 of the contact 6 is compressed by inner sides 72 of the corresponding through hole 71, whereby the tail portion 61 is plastically deformed for being securely engaged with the through hole 71.
However, one problem with this design is that the resiliency of the tail portion 61 of the contact 6 is insufficient, and therefore a large insertion force is required to insert the tail portion 61 into the through hole 71 of the PCB 7. Consequently, large interference forces may develop between the tail portion 61 and the through hole 71, which can damage the inner sides 72 of the through hole 71 of the PCB 7.
Hence, an improved press-fit contact is required to overcome the aforesaid disadvantages of the prior art.